ADVISORY COMMITTEE
Prof. Dr. Shah Monir Hossain
Senior Advisor, CDA
Prof. Dr. Shah Monir Hossain is the former Director General of Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) under the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of Bangladesh. Before retirement as the Director General in 2010, he worked in different important capacities of the Directorate General of Health Services, including Additional Director General and Director. Prof. Hossain also taught in several government medical colleges of Bangladesh as a Lecturer, Assistant Professor, Associate Professor, and Professor.
Prof. Hossain has a significant contribution in the fields of public health, food safety, and nutrition. He has worked as an Advisor and National Consultant in several reputed agencies, including World Health Organization (WHO), Food and Agriculture (FAO), UNICEF, and Johns Hopkins University. He also has a keen interest in research, and his areas of interest include nutrition, NCDs, and tobacco control. Prof. Hossain has co-authored many research articles in peer-reviewed journals, technical reports, and policy briefs.
Prof. Hossain completed his MBBS from Mymensingh Medical College, Bangladesh, and FCPS from Bangladesh College of Physicians and Surgeons (BCPS). He also did his postgraduate certificate course from the University of Edinburgh, UK, M.Phil. from the University of Dhaka, and MPH from North South University, Bangladesh.
Prof. Hossain has a significant contribution in the fields of public health, food safety, and nutrition. He has worked as an Advisor and National Consultant in several reputed agencies, including World Health Organization (WHO), Food and Agriculture (FAO), UNICEF, and Johns Hopkins University. He also has a keen interest in research, and his areas of interest include nutrition, NCDs, and tobacco control. Prof. Hossain has co-authored many research articles in peer-reviewed journals, technical reports, and policy briefs.
Prof. Hossain completed his MBBS from Mymensingh Medical College, Bangladesh, and FCPS from Bangladesh College of Physicians and Surgeons (BCPS). He also did his postgraduate certificate course from the University of Edinburgh, UK, M.Phil. from the University of Dhaka, and MPH from North South University, Bangladesh.
Professor Hafiz T.A. Khan, PhD
International Advisor, CDA
Professor Dr. Hafiz T.A. Khan is currently a Professor of Public Health and Statistics in the University of West London and also an Associate Research Fellow in the Oxford Institute of Population Ageing, University of Oxford, UK.
Previously, he worked at several higher education institutions, including School of Health Sciences of Birmingham City University, Middlesex University Business School, University of Oxford in the UK, International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA) in Austria and National University of Singapore. Dr. Khan started his career as a Lecturer from University of Dhaka, Bangladesh in 1991. Later he served as an Assistant Professor, Associate Professor and Full Professor of Statistics.
He trained himself as a Biostatistician and developed his academic career in the area of public health, demography and gerontology over the last 27 years. He got his PhD in Medical Demography from Edinburgh Napier University in collaboration with the University of Dundee in 1996. His research interests include the broader areas of population and development, population ageing, poverty and vulnerability, microfinance, and health and well-being in later life with special focus on loneliness, multi-morbidity, long-term care and support provisions. Recently, he conducted a research on The Global Ageing Surveys (GLAS) at the University of Oxford and published many articles on various aspects of global ageing and health. Till today, Dr. Khan has published more than 100 research articles in journals, working papers and book chapters on health and population related issues and disseminated research findings through all forms of media. He has co-authored two books “Research Methods for Business and Social Science”, Sage, 2007 & 2014.
Dr.khan is also a volunteer for several charitable organizations, including a special advisor to the board of Trustees of Age UK Oxfordshire; an academic advisor of the Commonwealth Scholarship Commission in the UK; and an international advisor of Young Power in Social Action (YPSA) in Bangladesh. He is a Chartered Statistician of the Royal Statistical Society and a Fellow of Royal Society for Public Health in the UK. He is a member of the editorial board of a number of academic journals.
Previously, he worked at several higher education institutions, including School of Health Sciences of Birmingham City University, Middlesex University Business School, University of Oxford in the UK, International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA) in Austria and National University of Singapore. Dr. Khan started his career as a Lecturer from University of Dhaka, Bangladesh in 1991. Later he served as an Assistant Professor, Associate Professor and Full Professor of Statistics.
He trained himself as a Biostatistician and developed his academic career in the area of public health, demography and gerontology over the last 27 years. He got his PhD in Medical Demography from Edinburgh Napier University in collaboration with the University of Dundee in 1996. His research interests include the broader areas of population and development, population ageing, poverty and vulnerability, microfinance, and health and well-being in later life with special focus on loneliness, multi-morbidity, long-term care and support provisions. Recently, he conducted a research on The Global Ageing Surveys (GLAS) at the University of Oxford and published many articles on various aspects of global ageing and health. Till today, Dr. Khan has published more than 100 research articles in journals, working papers and book chapters on health and population related issues and disseminated research findings through all forms of media. He has co-authored two books “Research Methods for Business and Social Science”, Sage, 2007 & 2014.
Dr.khan is also a volunteer for several charitable organizations, including a special advisor to the board of Trustees of Age UK Oxfordshire; an academic advisor of the Commonwealth Scholarship Commission in the UK; and an international advisor of Young Power in Social Action (YPSA) in Bangladesh. He is a Chartered Statistician of the Royal Statistical Society and a Fellow of Royal Society for Public Health in the UK. He is a member of the editorial board of a number of academic journals.
Dr. Mohammad Tajul Islam
Senior Advisor, CDA
Dr. Mohammad Tajul Islam is an adjunct professor at North South University. He has been teaching epidemiology, data analysis, and statistical methods in health sciences for more than 17 years. Previously, he worked at several UN agencies, including WHO, UNICEF, and UNFPA and international organizations, such as JICA, Save the Children, and icddr,b in various capacities. He is a medical graduate with post-graduations in Tropical Medicine (DTM&H and MCTM) and Epidemiology (MPH) from Mahidol University, Bangkok
Dr. Islam’s primary research interest is maternal and child health. He has authored or co-authored a number of articles published in international peer-reviewed journals. He is also the author of three books related to data analyses and research designs (Learning SPSS Without Pain; Data Analysis with Stata; and Basic Principles of Epidemiology). He was involved in a significant number of research projects and served as a member of the technical committee for the Bangladesh Demographic and Health Survey (BDHS). He is a regular reviewer of several international peer-reviewed journals, including the International Journal of Gynecology and Obstetrics (IJGO), Plos ONE, BMJ, BMC, and others.
Dr. Islam’s primary research interest is maternal and child health. He has authored or co-authored a number of articles published in international peer-reviewed journals. He is also the author of three books related to data analyses and research designs (Learning SPSS Without Pain; Data Analysis with Stata; and Basic Principles of Epidemiology). He was involved in a significant number of research projects and served as a member of the technical committee for the Bangladesh Demographic and Health Survey (BDHS). He is a regular reviewer of several international peer-reviewed journals, including the International Journal of Gynecology and Obstetrics (IJGO), Plos ONE, BMJ, BMC, and others.
Dr Mohammad Khairul Hasan
Advisor, CDA
Dr Mohammad Khairul Hasan retired as a Joint Secretary (Minister Local, Bangladesh Embassy, Bangkok, Thailand) in 2021. Previously, he worked in various important capacities of the government of Bangladesh, including Deputy Chief (Health), Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Director (Health), IMED, Ministry of Planning, Senior Assistant Chief, ERD, Ministry of Finance, and Senior Assistant Chief (Planning), Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Medical officer (MCH), Directorate General of Family Planning, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare. He also worked at UNICEF, Bangladesh in Maternal and Child Health. After retirement from the government service, he consulted with different international agencies, including World Bank Group, ADB and UNICEF.
Dr. Hasan’s primary interest lies in health policy, management, and community health. He completed his MBBS from Mymensingh Medical College and MSc in Community Health and Health Management in Developing Countries (MscCHHM) from Heidelberg University, Germany. He also did his postgraduate diploma in Applied Nutrition and Dietetics from the Institute of Food and Nutrition Science, University of Dhaka.
Dr. Hasan’s primary interest lies in health policy, management, and community health. He completed his MBBS from Mymensingh Medical College and MSc in Community Health and Health Management in Developing Countries (MscCHHM) from Heidelberg University, Germany. He also did his postgraduate diploma in Applied Nutrition and Dietetics from the Institute of Food and Nutrition Science, University of Dhaka.
Ahmed Hossain, PhD
International Advisor, CDA
Dr. Ahmed Hossain is an academic biostatistician and public health expert, and currently holds the position of Associate Professor in the Department of Health Services Administration, University of Sharjah, UAE. Previously, he was a Professor in the Department of Public Health at the North South University, Bangladesh. He has worked as a principal investigator in many national and international projects. He received his Ph.D. from the Dalla Lana School of Public Health of the University of Toronto in 2010, and he was a Canadian Institute of Health Research (CIHR) Fellow at McMaster University. Also, in 2004 at McMaster University, he completed his MSc in Biostatistics. Before coming to North South University, Dr. Hossain was an adjunct faculty in the School of Occupational and Public Health at the Ryerson University and a Senior Biostatistician at the Pharma Medica Research Inc. Dr. Hossain has been mainly instrumental in developing the field of statistical genomics. His current interest has focused on biomedical research involving human subjects.
To date, Dr. Hossain has published more than 50 papers in various international peer-reviewed journals. Currently, he is also an active editorial board member of 8 peer-reviewed international journals. He is also continuing several collaborations with clinical investigators, faculty members, and epidemiologists at McMaster University, Ryerson University, University of Manitoba, and North South University. Dr. Hossain developed an R package, which gives an estimation of summary measures and variances on receiver operating characteristic curves, which are useful for high dimensional data analysis and can be downloaded from Bioconductor.
To date, Dr. Hossain has published more than 50 papers in various international peer-reviewed journals. Currently, he is also an active editorial board member of 8 peer-reviewed international journals. He is also continuing several collaborations with clinical investigators, faculty members, and epidemiologists at McMaster University, Ryerson University, University of Manitoba, and North South University. Dr. Hossain developed an R package, which gives an estimation of summary measures and variances on receiver operating characteristic curves, which are useful for high dimensional data analysis and can be downloaded from Bioconductor.
Prof. Dr. Papia Sultana
Advisor, CDA
Dr. Papia Sultana is a professor in the Department of Statistics at the University of Rajshahi, Bangladesh. She has about 20 years of teaching experience and worked as a statistician and principal investigator in many donor-funded research projects at home and abroad. She worked at the National Institute of Education and Singapore General Hospital, Singapore. She also served as a member of the Singhealth Grant Reviewer Committee.
Dr. Sultana’s primary interest includes parametric and nonparametric methods in medical diagnosis, public health, and clinical trial. She is the author of two books related to biostatistics and public health. She has published more than 50 peer-reviewed journal articles and presented papers in many national and international conferences. She has completed her PhD from the Department of Statistics and Applied Probability, National University of Singapore (NUS), Singapore. She has done her BSc, MSC, and MPhil in Statistics from the University of Rajshahi, Bangladesh.
Dr. Sultana’s primary interest includes parametric and nonparametric methods in medical diagnosis, public health, and clinical trial. She is the author of two books related to biostatistics and public health. She has published more than 50 peer-reviewed journal articles and presented papers in many national and international conferences. She has completed her PhD from the Department of Statistics and Applied Probability, National University of Singapore (NUS), Singapore. She has done her BSc, MSC, and MPhil in Statistics from the University of Rajshahi, Bangladesh.
Dr. Russell Kabir, PhD
International Advisor, CDA
Dr. Russell Kabir is currently working as Associate Professor at the School of Allied Health, Faculty of Health, Education, Medicine, and Social Care, Anglia Ruskin University in Cambridge (UK). He obtained his PhD degree from Middlesex University, UK. He completed his MSc in Research Methods at the same university. His first degree was on Bachelor of Dental Surgery from the University of Dhaka. He has over 12 years of teaching experience in various universities in the UK.
Dr. Kabir has authored and co-authored many journal articles and book chapters. He is currently serving as an Academic Editor of PLOS One Journal, Journal of Perioperative Practice and BMC Public Health. He is a member of the International Epidemiological Association and a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy, UK. He is interested to perform collaborative and interdisciplinary research in public health issues with a special focus on dental public health, maternal and reproductive health issues, violence against women as well as ageing and health.
Dr. Kabir has authored and co-authored many journal articles and book chapters. He is currently serving as an Academic Editor of PLOS One Journal, Journal of Perioperative Practice and BMC Public Health. He is a member of the International Epidemiological Association and a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy, UK. He is interested to perform collaborative and interdisciplinary research in public health issues with a special focus on dental public health, maternal and reproductive health issues, violence against women as well as ageing and health.
Dr Ali Davod Parsa, MD, PhD
International Advisor, CDA
Dr Ali Davod Parsa is currently working as Associate Professor of Health Economics, Policy & Management at the School of Allied Health – Faculty of Health, Education, Medicine, and Social Care, Anglia Ruskin University in Cambridge (UK). He has an established, proven track record of success at a very senior level of leadership, collaborative research, and teaching excellence at undergraduate, postgraduate, and doctoral levels.
Dr Parsa first graduated as a qualified GP from the School of Medicine- University of Zanjan, Medical Sciences and Health services, Iran in 1994. He then worked for a decade as clinician and then at senior management appointments, where Dr Parsa developed an interest in research within Healthcare Policy and Healthcare Management. Consequently, he was awarded a PhD in Health Economics from School of Clinical Sciences and a Postgraduate Diploma in Health Services Research (HSR) from the School of Community Health Sciences at the University of Nottingham (UK).
Dr Parsa has over 30 years of experience in research and teaching, as well as senior national leadership roles in public health, health management, health economics, and health policy with a strong emphasis on Health Economic Evaluations and Analysis. In recognition of his outstanding contribution to the national health management, he was promoted to the position of Director General of Planning, Programming, Budgeting & Health Economics Department in Iran in 1999. He has authored and co-authored many journal articles and book chapters. He is a member of many prestigious international academic bodies, including British Medical Association, Royal Society of Medicine, and Royal Society of Public Health.
Dr Parsa first graduated as a qualified GP from the School of Medicine- University of Zanjan, Medical Sciences and Health services, Iran in 1994. He then worked for a decade as clinician and then at senior management appointments, where Dr Parsa developed an interest in research within Healthcare Policy and Healthcare Management. Consequently, he was awarded a PhD in Health Economics from School of Clinical Sciences and a Postgraduate Diploma in Health Services Research (HSR) from the School of Community Health Sciences at the University of Nottingham (UK).
Dr Parsa has over 30 years of experience in research and teaching, as well as senior national leadership roles in public health, health management, health economics, and health policy with a strong emphasis on Health Economic Evaluations and Analysis. In recognition of his outstanding contribution to the national health management, he was promoted to the position of Director General of Planning, Programming, Budgeting & Health Economics Department in Iran in 1999. He has authored and co-authored many journal articles and book chapters. He is a member of many prestigious international academic bodies, including British Medical Association, Royal Society of Medicine, and Royal Society of Public Health.
Dr. SM Yasir Arafat
Advisor, CDA
Dr. S M Yasir Arafat is currently working as an Associate Consultant of Psychiatry at Bangladesh Specialized Hospital Ltd. (BSHL), Dhaka, Bangladesh. He is affiliated with Dnet as an honorary Research Fellow and Biomedical Research Foundation, Bangladesh as Senior Research Fellow. He was affiliated with the University of Bristol, UK as a Visiting Senior Research Associate, (August 2021-2023). He completed MD in Psychiatry from Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University, Dhaka and MBBS from the Dhaka Medical College, Dhaka, Bangladesh. He also did an MPH in Health Economics and MBA in Marketing. Dr. Arafat has (co)authored more than 350 peer-reviewed articles and book chapters, and (co)edited several books with Springer. He has been included in the global 2% researcher list in 2021, 2022, and 2023. He is acting as an editorial member in more than 10 leading journals in mental health published by Frontiers, Wiley, Springer, and Taylor and Francis. His research focused on mental health, suicidal behavior, psychometrics, panic buying, and psycho-sexual disorders..
Dr Sheikh M Alif
International Advisor, CDA
Dr Sheikh M Alif is an academic and clinical epidemiologist working as a Senior Lecturer of Public Health based at the Institute of Health and Wellbeing, Federation University Australia. With a PhD in clinical epidemiology and population health from the University of Melbourne, an MPH in Epidemiology, and a clinical background in Bachelor of Dental Surgery, Dr Alif’s research program is dedicated to improving respiratory health among workers and preventing occupational lung diseases through early detection and control of harmful occupational exposures. His impactful contributions include over 40 publications and three influential technical reports. Driven by a passion for teaching, he imparts his expertise to aspiring public health professionals, teaching subjects such as health promotion, occupational and environmental Medicine, planetary health and Epidemiology and Biostatistics.